love songs for the broken hearted
by lydia martins
Summary: AU: Valentine's Day. The very mention of it sends shivers down many men's backs - including Austin Moon. / Or, Austin and Ally are neighbours and best friends that need a little push to become more. / A story in three parts.— AustinAlly
1. i

**author's note:** because i absolutely love high school auslly au's, and the falling for your beat friend cliche! this story will about about three chapters long, so here's the first part - enjoy!

disney owns austin & ally, and therefore, i don't own it, capiche? and the song is by jason mraz - although i will always think of it as sam and quinn.

* * *

**love songs for the broken hearted  
****PART I**

* * *

Austin/Ally

_"Do you hear me? I'm talking to you / Across the water / across the deep blue ocean / Under the open sky / oh my, baby I'm trying / Boy I hear you in my dreams / I feel your whisper across the sea / I keep you with me in my heart / You make it easier when life gets hard / I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend / Lucky to have been where I have been / Lucky to be coming home again."_

— **Lucky** (Jason Mraz feat. Colbie Caillat)

* * *

_un_.

If there were three things that Austin Moon could count as constant in his life, they would be his ability to play guitar (and drums and the keyboard), his amazingly gorgeous girlfriend, Cassidy, and his best friend, one-of-the-guys, his buddy, Ally.

Of course, he didn't expect that he was going to lose all three of these things in one day, but then again — no one ever expects these things on this day, this day especially.

Maybe his day didn't start out so happy — in fact, it started out as one of the worst days of his life — but, with his hand entwined with the girl's, their feet making footprints in the sand, he couldn't regret every misstep, every false move, that brought him here.

"Happy Valentine's day," he says, and then he kisses her like they are the only two people left on the planet, which, to them, they were.

x

_deux_.

"Dez, come on, man," Austin Moon grumbles into the phone, ruffling his already messy bed rumpled hair as he spoke into the phone. "I need ideas on how to make this an amazing Valentine's day for Cassidy — it's our first one together; last year's doesn't count 'cause she thought I was gay and cheating on her with another guy, awkward times — and you're, like, my go-to man when it comes to these things."

There was a snore on the other end of the line. "Wha—? C'mon, man, just take her to a movie or something," Dez mumbles through sleepy eyes, "I don't know — I'm kind of bad at those romantic things, luckily Trish isn't interested in all that mushy gushy stuff and I'm just renting Zaliens and ordering a pizza."

Oh how Austin cursed those who had an easy romantic life — so practically anyone but himself.

"Thanks," Austin growls into the phone, "for nothing, man. I could have gotten the same advice from Google — we go to a movie every Friday, at least, so it won't be special — Cass deserves special."

"Well, then, I don't know — why don't you ask a girl what she'd want to do on Valentine's Day if she was your girlfriend?" Dez says, his words garbled from sleep. Austin heard another yawn from his end and fought the urge to roll his eyes, despite the fact that Dez couldn't possibly see him.

"Dez that's — actually a really good idea," Austin replies, mulling the idea over in his mind, "but I just need to find a girl . . ."

"I've done my part, dude," Dez mutters, "I'm goin' back to sleep."

"Uh — school starts in less than an hour, man." Austin laughs.

"Cool — almost an hour left to sleep." The line cuts off, leaving Austin with only the dial tone and his thoughts to keep him busy.

"Dez actually has a pretty decent idea," Austin ponders, "But I need a girl who'd be willing to — _Ally_." Of course; Ally was his other half, his best friend, his go-to gal — she was always there for him, all he needed to do was ask.

He turns on his phone and fires a quick text.

**Sent to Ally D at 7:40AM**

_ALLY —_

_CAN I TALK 2 U? IT'S ABOUT C AND V-DAY. THX. _

_— AUSTIN_

A few minutes later, while he's in the middle of his strenuous hair fixing technique — how else would he get such perfect hair? — his phone vibrates. "Really, All?" he mutters, sighing. "When I'm in the middle of the Austin Moon experience?" But he smiles anyway, because he isn't really mad — he can't be really mad, it's _Ally_.

**1 New Message(s) from Ally D. Sent at 7:52AM.**

_AUSTIN —_

_I KNOW UR IN THE MIDDLE OF UR HAIR-FIXING ;) BUT KK I CAN HELP. I'LL BE OVER IN 20 MINS :) _

_— ALLY_

He laughs in a way that only Ally can make him laugh, "How does she know — ?" His phone vibrates; it's another message from Ally.

_PS I CAN C U. — A_.

He looks up and, sure enough, he can see Ally in her bedroom, curtains open wide to let in the February sun. She smiles at him and mouths, "Trouble in paradise?"

He shakes his head. "I'll tell you later, okay?" She nods and closes her violet curtains, but her silhouette, short and petite, can still be seen through the weak light.

x

_trois_.

Cassidy calls him when he's halfway through his breakfast, and let it be known that it is very hard to sound charming on the phone when you're scarfing down Cap'n Crunch like it's the only food you've ever eaten. _Sexy and I Know It_ starts blasting and, still red-faced, after mumbling a quick excuse me to his parents, he flees to the sanctuary of the study to talk.

"Hey, babe," Austin says into the phone after coughing up what seems to be half his food. "What's up? Is something wrong, you never call me before school, usually you just text — not that there's anything wrong with calling me, but that's not saying that you should do it every day —" He knows he's rambling again, talking like an idiot, but something about Cassidy and his crush on her has always made him really nervous to talk to her, even after a year and a half of dating her.

"It's okay, Austin," Cassidy says, popping her gum. "I just wanted to say that you shouldn't make any plans for after school — daddy just won a legal settlement, and we're going to the Alps for a week to celebrate."

He tries to make his voice sound cheerful, "Wow. Great."

Her gum-popping stops. "Why aren't you happy, Austin?"

"Who says I'm not happy," he mutters, scowling at a painting of a long-dead ancestor on the wall. "It's just that I wanted to spend at least one Valentine's day with my girlfriend before we go off to university — is that too much to ask?"

"We were together last Valentine's Day," Cassidy argues, "and we'll spend some of this Valentine's day together."

"Oh yeah?" Austin can feel his blood boiling. This is usually the part where he concedes that Cassidy is right — even when she's not — just to avoid a fight, but he won't, not this time. "Because telling everyone at school that I'm gay — when I'm not — and accusing me of cheating is an amazing way to spend Valentine's Day."

"It wouldn't have happened if you would have spent more time with me and less time with Charlie, or Chuck or whatever his name is!" Cassidy snapped through the phone.

"Maybe, just maybe, if you'd spoken to me for at least one second that Carl was my cousin, then —"

"You know what? Don't pick me up, Austin. I'll have my driver drive me to school. See you later." She hangs up without doing the customary 'I love you more!' that she usually does and Austin just knows that he's in so much trouble when she finally catches up with him.

He wants to scream, punch something, do _anything_, but then —

_A —_

_WHERE R U? I'M WAITING OUTSIDE UR HOUSE._

_— A_

He grabs his phone and his backpack and, calling out a final goodbye to his parents, he closes the front door behind him with a snap, sinking down with a groan. He knew how the rest of the day would play out: Cassidy would not go to his locker like she usually did — something he was actually glad for because it gave him more time to spend with the guys — and she wouldn't talk to him for two period, but just before third, she'd slip a note into his locker that said something to the effect of 'meet me in the 1st floor bathroom in 10', which he would do. Then, she'd say how sorry she was, and he'd lie and say that he, too, was sorry and that it was all his fault and she'd kiss him and all would be forgiven.

It wasn't anything new with them, but he was tired of it all.

_A — _

_SRRY. FIGHT WITH C. I'LL TELL U L8R._

_— A_

x

_quatre_.

When he opens the passenger seat door to Ally's small, grey Lincoln Zephyr, she hands him a cup of Starbucks coffee and a muffin. "Thanks," he mumbles after taking a bite of the chocolate chip muffin. The warm chocolate chips spread over his tongue and makes him almost — _almost_ — forget about his fight with Cassidy.

"No problem," Ally says, taking a long sip out of her own cup. "Do you — ?"

"Yeah," he answers even before she finishes her sentence. She tosses him a few sugar packets and he catches them and opens then pours them into his coffee. She doesn't say anything, but he grins at her: they're at the level in their friendship — thirteen years — that they know each other better than anyone else knows them. "Thank you, Ally. You are amazing."

"Well," she grins even though she's blushing, "I do know how angry you get when you don't get your morning coffee." He laughs good-naturedly.

_When I walk into a spot, this is what I see _— He presses ignore and tries not to look at Ally, who is looking at him curiously, wondering why he'd just ignored a call from Cassidy. "She's going to the Alps for a week," he says after a few minutes of silence. "And she's leaving today — _today_ of all days."

Ally tuts sympathetically. "So are you having dinner first or — ?"

"No," Austin says, frowning, and he repeats it. "No. She's leaving right after school, and unless I take her out to dinner and a show in our fifty minute lunch period, then I don't know."

Ally pauses and taps her chin for a moment, "You know, most guys would be glad they don't have to do all the mushy stuff."

Austin sighs, taking another bite out of the muffin. "This is our last Valentine's day before we all go to college next year. I mean, I'll be at Berkeley, she'll be at SUNY, how will we even work out?"

Ally doesn't respond, and for a few minutes, the only song playing on the radio is Taylor Swift's _Today Was A Fairy tale. _"If it was meant to be, Austin, then you shouldn't have to worry about all this."

"I know." He groans into his hands. "But — I worked so hard for Cassidy to even notice me, and I don't know — sometimes I just feel like, like, well — like I like her more than she likes me."

"You shouldn't, Austin," she says, frowning, "you really shouldn't. Was that what you wanted to talk to me about when you texted me?"

Austin gives her a dry, humourless laugh. "No. I was going to ask for your ideas on how to impress Cass. Like, date ideas and all that. Guess I don't need that now."

"Since Cassidy isn't going to be here tonight, and Dallas and I are pretty much over, why don't we just chill at my house, play some Rockband, write some songs?" She twists her hands as she says this, as if she's nervous despite the fact that they've been to each other's houses plenty of times. Somehow, the fact that it's Valentine's Day seems to heighten the awkwardness.

If Austin notices this, he doesn't comment. "Sure. And I'll bring some Jim Carrey movies and Hershey's kisses and Chinese food."

"Okay and I've got the ice-cream," she says, grinning. "It's a date."

The word _date_ tingles on her tongue and floats out into the air, transient and tangible.

x

_cinq_.

Cassidy is already waiting at her locker when Austin and Ally approach it, and he can feel Ally stiffen beside him. Cassidy's smile slips, to be replaced by a fake one, and Austin is no fool as to the reason why — she and Ally had never gotten along.

In fact, his friendship with Ally had been the cause of numerous fights but that was one thing he was not willing to give in on. Ally had been his biggest supporter when he was trying to get Cassidy to notice him, and he wasn't going to abandon her now.

"Hey, baby," Cassidy purrs once he gets within hearing distance. She kisses him hard on the mouth, like their fight this morning had never happened at all. "Oh, and hi — uh — it's Amy, isn't it?" Austin fights the urge to roll his eyes — she and Ally have known each other longer than he and Ally had.

"Ally, actually," Ally responds with a smile that matches Cassidy's, watt to watt. "I have to go." She flits away through the crowd, and Austin resists the urge to run after her; a public fight with Cassidy would obviously become big news.

"Why did you come with _her_?" Cassidy hisses the second Ally walks away.

"We're carpooling," Austin says, rolling his eyes. "You know — saving the environment and all that. And since you didn't want me to pick you up — "

"Because you were being quite unsupportive of my family traditions," Cassidy interrupts.

" — and Ally lives right next door, she offered to give me a ride," he finishes as if he hadn't heard her.

"Right. Whatever." She scowls. "I don't want you driving to school with her anymore."

"Okay, I get it. But you can't run my life, Cassidy," he says firmly. "Ally is just a friend and I'm going to ride to school with her if I want to."

"You are so — argh — I come here to tell you . . . God, boys are idiots . . . and it's not like he hasn't ever told me what to do . . . I can't believe I was going to apologize! . . . Whatever, I don't care. We are officially on break, Austin Moon!" she snaps at him, her words jumbling together with her rage. "Call me when you're ready to apologize."

"See you later, Cass," he calls to her retreating back.

"Dude, you are going to be in so much crap when you make up," a student whom Austin recognizes as Ally's ex-boyfriend, Dallas, says with a low whistle. "And that's why I'd never ever date Cassidy — I mean, the girl is hot, but she is insane." There are murmurs of assent from the crowd.

"Whatever," Austin grumbles. He knew it — he knew he should have stayed in bed this morning.

x

_six_.

By the time he gets to his first period class — AP Spanish — everyone and he does mean _everyone_, has heard about his fight with Cassidy. He supposes that's what comes with the territory of dating the most popular girl in school — your personal life gets broadcast over loudspeakers. When he walks into the Spanish class, everyone stops talking; this meant that everyone, prior to his arrival, had most likely been discussing him and Cassidy. "What?" he barks at all the eager faces as he plods towards his seat.

"I guess you're the new class celebrity," Trish says with a laugh once Austin sits down.

"I'm not in the mood, Trish," he growls. "I know that my romantic life is the talk of the school right now, but — "

"I know, Ally told me that you might be a little mad," Trish responds, patting Austin on the back.

"Ally — oh my God," Austin groans, "How is she reacting to all of this?"

"I don't know, why don't you ask her?" Trish replies offhandedly.

Austin sighs. "You're right."

_ALLY — _

_HOW R U? SRRY BOUT C. TXT ME, K_

— AUSTIN

_PS – STILL ON 4 MOVIES?_

He has to wait a few moments for her replying text, and it's all he can do not to break into Ally's American History class to check up on her.

_AUSTIN — _

_UGH, RUMOURS SUCK. C'S UR GF, I UNDERSTAND IF SHE'S JEALOUS. :) _

_— ALLY _

_PS – DUH! I'M RENTING YES MAN AND STEPBROTHERS. :D_

He grins and quickly looks up to see if their teacher, Senora Lopez, is paying any attention. However, upon finding the young Latina teacher talking about Subjunctive tenses, he replies to the text.

_A — _

_DEF. IK BUT SHE CAN'T DICTATE WHO I'M FRIENDS WITH. :(_

_— A_

_PS – AND I'M BRINGING THE HANGOVER AND ROCKBAND III. PERF. :)_

This time, she doesn't respond for a quarter of an hour, and Austin checks his phone every half a minute in case she responds.

"What's wrong?" Trish asks him after the seventh minute of waiting in agony. "Is she — ?"

"She stopped replying, no big deal," Austin lies through his teeth.

When he next gets a text, he jumps, thinking it's Ally, but —

_Austin, I think we need to talk. – C._

_Cassidy, my locker after second? –A _

_A, sure – remember, you brought this upon yourself. –C_

He doesn't respond to that text.

_AUSTIN — _

_I DON'T THINK I'LL B ABLE 2 WATCH THE MOVIE 2NITE. I'VE GOT SUMTHING PLANNED. ALSO U NEED 2 GET A RIDE FROM D OR T FROM NOW ON._

_— ALLY_

x

_seven_.

Ally is most definitely avoiding him, Austin Moon is quite sure of that. What he isn't sure of is why she's ignoring him, or why she sent him a text that was so cold it must have been forced out of her. After Spanish, he'd tried to find Ally all to no avail. When the girl didn't want to be found, she wouldn't be found.

"What do you mean she sent you a text that cancelled all your plans?" Trish screeches when Austin finally tells her the content of those messages. "But — she didn't . . . she wouldn't . . . it's not like Ally at all . . . bailing on a friend!"

"I know," Austin stresses. "I know — and I wish I could find her to explain, but I can't!"

"She's hiding from you," Trish declares. "Don't worry — I worked as a detective for two days at the 'Find a Pet' agency in the mall."

"You did?" Austin raises his eyebrows in disbelief. "And why did you only work there for two days?"

"Because," Trish sighs, "I was a liability."

Austin face-palms. "Well, you're the only person I have left to help me, so you'll have to do."

"Oh, gee, thanks for your appreciation," Trish grumbles with a sarcastic smile. "What ever can I do to repay you?"

"Okay, okay — I'm sorry I'm not being very appreciative," Austin mumbles. "Now can you help me find the girl or what?"

"Well," Trish pauses, evidently thinking hard. "I know that she has a spare after first period, so usually, she goes to the pool — that was when she was dating Dallas — to watch Dallas swim, or if she has a project or an assignment or a test, she'd go to the library."

"I've already tried all of those places," Austin sighs, kicking at an imaginary piece of dust.

"What about the music room?" Trish suggests. "When she was dating Dallas that was where she'd go whenever they fought." Austin nods — it seems like Ally's life has been divided into three periods: pre-Dallas, during Dallas, and post-Dallas. Just like, it seems, Austin's relationship with Cassidy. "How long did she date Dallas, anyway?"

"About three years," Austin replies, frowning slightly. "But she's liked him for way longer."

As the duo made their way to the music room, Austin paused, wondering what he'd find inside. He pulls opens the door, looking instinctively towards the piano which he and Ally had practiced many duets on.

"The songbook," Austin says with a cheer. "That's Ally's — it _must_ be. Which means she is here."

"Which means my work is done. Ciao," Trish retorts, laughing. "You'll get my bill in the mail."

"Uh — right," Austin says distractedly. He sits down on the small piano bench, waiting for Ally to come back.

The book is open.

"No — I can't," he repeats to himself, but he wants to read the pages so badly. "No — that's a betrayal of her trust. She'd never forgive me — and even if she did, she'd never trust me." But the book was singing to him, calling his name — and really, he could see his name in the book.

Ally had written about him. Just a small peak wouldn't hurt . . . right?

And so he picked up the book —

x

**to** **be** **continued**.

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** author's note ii:** so how is it? worth continuing?

please **do not** favourite or alert without leaving a review, thanks!

Madeline [_overstreets_]


	2. ii

**author's note: **Here's the long-awaited second part - hopefully it was worth the wait, though. Thank you guys so much for all the reviews and favourites and alerts on the last chapter, it was amazing!

Of course, I don't own Austin and Ally which belongs to Disney; the song at the beginning id Give Your Heart A Break by Demi Lavato.

PS - See if you can spot the Mean Girls reference. ;)

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**love songs for the broken hearted  
PART II**

* * *

_"The day I first met you / You told me you'd never fall in love / But now that I get you / I know fear is what it really was / Now here we are, so close / Yet so far, haven't I passed the test? / When will you realize / Baby, I'm not like the rest / Don't wanna break your heart / I wanna give your heart a break / I know you're scared it's wrong / Like you might make a mistake / There's just one life to live / And there's no time to wait, to waste / So let me give your heart a break."_

— **GIVE YOUR HEART A BREAK, **Demi Lavato.

* * *

_huit_.

He knows he shouldn't haven looked at Ally's songbook — he just knows it; it's one of their unspoken rules of friendship — don't make fun of Austin's hair, never bother Ally when she has a pickle and _never, ever, under any circumstances, read Ally's songbook_ — on pain of death.

Austin briefly remembers the last person that read her songbook — he is currently residing at the local cemetery. "Oh crap," he mutters when he hears familiar footsteps outside.

He manages to sit down on one of the hard wooden chairs just as she enters the room, humming an unfamiliar tune to herself. She doesn't notice him at first and begins singing the song that she'd been humming when she'd entered the room. Her voice is quiet and melodious.

"_I love the things you do, it's how you do the things you love, but it's not a love song, not a love song, I love the way you get me not, correct me if I'm wrong — this is not a love song, not a love song_." Her voice had a deeper undertone to it, almost sad . . .

He secretly loves these moments — where Ally is unguarded and vulnerable but still _Ally_. It's one of those things he loves about her. Of course, she'll kill him once she realizes that he's listening to her sing. "Hey," he says, just to alert her of his presence.

She jumps, startled, and Austin smiles at her. The easy expression that had been on her face since she entered is gone now, replaced by a guarded, wary expression. "Austin, hi," she tries to give him a smile, but he knows her too well and he doesn't buy it.

"What gives, Ally?" he asks, looking at her directly in the eye — or at least attempting to; she purposely turns her eyes skyward, avoiding his gaze. "I thought you were excited to hang out together tonight . . . and all of a sudden you're calling to cancel?" There is a layer of hurt in his voice that he doesn't bother to hide — after all, they know each other too well for facades to work.

Ally still doesn't meet his gaze. "Listen, I'm sorry, Austin. I just can't, okay? _I can't_."

Austin stands up and takes two steps closer to Ally. His brow is furrowed in thought. "Does this have anything to do with Cassidy — because you can tell me, Ally, you should know that."

"It — it has nothing to do with Cassidy," Ally says in a near-whisper. "I just can't hang out tonight."

Austin Moon may be a lot of things, but he is most definitely not stupid. However, the look that Ally gives him stops him from any further interrogation. "Okay." Of course, not interrogating Ally does not mean not trying to get to the bottom of this case for Austin Moon.

"I — I have to go," she says and she slips past him, through the door, and into the nearly deserted hallways. He has a strange urge to chase after her, but he doesn't because he's noticed a piece of paper on the ground — something that's fallen out of Ally's songbook.

Lyrics and chords for a song called _Not A Love Song_.

x

_neuf_.

He skips the rest of second period — after all, he's already missed fifteen minutes and right now, Calculus is the last thing on his mind. He manages to sneak out of the school and wanders into the area of the parking lot that he and Ally usually hang out — well, where they hung out before Cassidy and Dallas had come into the picture.

He studies the song that Ally'd dropped but gives up because it reminds him of Ally's sudden (read: strange and mysterious) coolness towards him. He can't help the feeling that Cassidy is behind this but he'll find out the truth at before third period.

Sometimes, he wonders of dating Cassidy is worth the drama — then she'll whisper that she loves him or grab his hand and, for that moment, he will be placated. Until they return back to their usual bickering. Sometimes, it seems that dating Cassidy is more of a chore than a leisure activity. Not that he'd ever tell her that.

Finally, second period is over and he can go back to his locker and pretend that he was in Calc and that people aren't staring at him and reporting the latest trials and follies of Aussidy — their portmanteau given to them by their fellow students — and asking him for interviews.

He puts Ally's song in his back pocket, planning ways to give it to her without her assuming the worst.

As expected, people whisper when he passes them on his way to his locker and he wistfully remembers freshman year, when he was just another anonymous ninth grader, back when it was just _Austin and Ally_ with no strings and no Dallas and no Cassidy. "Excuse me," he says rather roughly to a pair of juniors, making out in front of his locker.

They shift a few feet to the left, lips still fiercely locked.

He envies them — the fact that they, at least, seem to be making use of Valentine's Day.

x

_dix_.

"Austin. Good, you're here." It's Cassidy and her band of loyal servants — er, friends — an expression of fake joy on her face. "We need to talk. Girls, see you later?"

The girls (who he secretly calls the minions in his head) all give Cassidy simpering smiles and sashay off, probably to go gossip about some innocent girl that Cassidy has decided to hate.

"Cassidy, I have to ask you something and you have to promise to answer truthfully," Austin begins before she can even start her (rehearsed) spiel. Her pink lips fall open in surprise and her blonde eyebrows rise until they are threateningly high. He isn't exactly surprised — he can count on one hand the amount of times he's talked back to Cassidy.

"Sure, honey," she says, her smile growing bigger.

"Did you threaten Ally or something, because she's acting all weird around me and I really don't know what's going on," he says this all in a rush, dropping his voice so that no one can hear the latest part of the Aussidy drama.

Unlike most people, Cassidy doesn't frown when she is angry or annoyed — instead, her smile grows larger. And right now, her smile can only be compared to that of the Cheshire cat. "Listen, Austin, honey," her voice loses the fake sincerity. "I didn't have anything to do with Ally not talking to you. Maybe she finally got a clue that you're my boyfriend and you _belong_ to me . . . "

He searches Cassidy's face for any sign of insincerity and as arrogant as that rant was, she doesn't seem to be lying when she says that she had nothing to do with Ally's coldness towards him. Of course, the latter part of the sentence manages to anger him all the same. "Listen, _babe_," he says, lowering his voice even more so that she has to lean in even closer to her to listen. "I'm not anyone's property — I'm _Austin Moon_ and I don't need someone like you to be happy."

Her jaw drops. "Austin — "

"No, Cassidy," he hisses, "you listen, because I've finally had enough of this — of you treating me like I'm your dog that will always wander back to me. I'm done with this . . . I'm done with you."

He leaves her there, staring after him, mouth opening and closing like a guppy's.

x

_onze_.

He goes to his third period classic — English Literature — and sits down in his usual seat. The look on his face is so dark that he almost pities anyone who even looks at him the wrong way. It seems that everyone is getting his vibe, however, and no one talks to him.

Except for Dez — but he doesn't really count, does he?

"Hey, man," Dez says, mouth full of hotdog. Austin wonders how he can eat such greasy food this early in the morning. "What's up?"

"Cassidy and I are on the outs," Austin says with a sigh, absently doodling his initials onto his English binder. "She said some stuff about Ally and she basically says that she owns me."

"Doesn't she, though?" Dez wonders aloud. If it had been anyone else to utter those unfortunate words, Austin probably would have decked them then and there but it's Dez and he's often philosophical under the crazy-ass ginger façade — as hard to believe as that is. "I mean, doesn't she try to control who your friends are and what you do?"

"Man, that's not the same — " Austin pauses, mulling this over in his head. "Oh crap. You've got a point. I can't believe I didn't notice this before."

"It's kind of obvious, really," Dez says with a nonchalant shrug. "I mean, she likes being on top, but she doesn't like all the emotional crap." In other words, she didn't love him. Although he'd suspected this for the entirety of their relationship, to hear it stated so baldy was a major hit to his ego.

"Am I the only one who didn't realize this?" Austin groans quietly, putting his head in hands.

"I completely agree with you, Mr. Moon, Atticus' defence of Tom was superb and the jury's decision was quite disappointing," their English teacher, Mr. Griffin, says from the front of the classroom. Austin had never been gladder that he was insane about English, namely Harper Lee and _To Kill A Mockingbird._

"Oh, yes, definitely," Austin says with as much gusto as he can muster — which is not a lot, but it seems to fool the teacher who goes back to talking about _Dills and Scouts and Jems_ that Austin has no knowledge of and has no care to learn about.

Dez tries valiantly to hide his laughter, trying to pass it off as a coughing fit. "_Dude_."

Austin shrugs. "I didn't want to get detention — sue me."

Before he can grill Dez about other things in his relationship that everyone and their mother knew but no one decided to tell him, the door opens and a pimply faced, short sophomore enters. Glancing around shyly, she says, "Hi — uh, is this Mr. Griffin's classroom?"

"It is," the teacher replies, giving the girl a once-over.

"Uh — I'm Marcie Valentino," she says, stumbling over her words. "I'm supposed to deliver the Valentine's Day carnations and cards that people ordered last week." She coughs again and her entire face turns red.

"I forgot all about that," Austin mumbles.

"What difference does it make, dude? Cassidy doesn't send Valentine's — she only gets them. I hope Trish got me one," Dez sighs wistfully.

"Why? I didn't peg you to be a romantic," Austin mutters, face falling into a grin.

"Oh, don't worry. I'm not — I just want the chocolate."

"Okay, deliver them fast then, Margie; we're at the most exciting part of the book!" Mr. Griffin says, gesturing to his lethargic class. Austin can't help but snort in disbelief — this part of the book, in his opinion, is just as boring as the rest of the book.

"It's Marcie," she repeats, face still crimson. She begins handing out the Valentine's, " . . . three for Grace Bowman, two for Rachel Berry, one for a Snoop Dawg . . . four for Austin Moon — you go, Austin Moon! — and none for Dez Murphy." She quickly leaves after that.

Dez looks distraught.

"Here, man, you can have these," Austin offers, offering him two of his Valentines which were from anonymous freshmen. Dez lights up like a Christmas tree and grabs them from Austin, leaving Austin with two others.

For some unknown reason, his heart is pounding.

x

_douze_.

The first is from Ally, which says the usual_: keep rocking. xox. — A_. It is somewhat of a joking tradition that each year they'd send each other Valentine's saying 'keep rocking' and 'keep writing' because both of them are not fans of the extravagancy of Valentine's Day, and it is also a reminder to them to not give up their dreams. He'd gotten the same words from her for years, and yet it makes his heart race this time . . . he has no clue why.

And then he turns to the second Valentine, turning it over in his hands before opening it. He briefly wonders if Cassidy had relented on her 'get not give!' policy when he notices that it had song lyrics on it — that was strange. Someone had written a poem — or a song — on the piece if paper. '_You're always on my mind / I think about you all the time / Um, no / Lets not talk about it / Drama: We can live without it / Got your way with the world / There's a clock we'll ignore / Find a way around it._' The words seemed vaguely familiar, as if he'd read them before, but he chalks it up to hearing it on a sappy love poem in English Lit. There is no name on the card, just the words _from your secret admirer_.

He smiles to himself and puts the note into his back pocket, the same one which currently holds Ally's song.

x

_treize_.

He finds Dallas the second the bell rings, leaving Dez in the dust without an explanation because it finally fits — he's not as oblivious as everyone says he is.

"Dallas," he calls once he spots the floppy haired jock. "I think we need to talk." He closes Dallas' locker with a clang and the brown haired teen looks at Austin, bemused.

"Wait . . . what, man?" Dallas asks, looking confused.

"Do you like Ally?" he drops his voice. Dallas stares at Austin incredulously.

"Why would you — Ally and I broke up, Austin," Dallas says slowly, the way one would speak to a mad person. "Why would you even — ?"

"I — I think Ally may like you again," Austin whispers back. Dallas stares at Austin for a moment before bursting into a fit of raucous laughter.

"That's funny, man," Dallas says, wiping his eyes, his body still shaking with chortles.

"It's true!" Austin hisses, "So you'd better stop treating this as a joke, Dallas!"

"Trust me," Dallas says, his lips curving upwards into a smile, "she doesn't like me!"

"It was in her journal!" Austin retorts, "Your exact description!"

"You read her journal?" Dallas asks, eyebrows threatening to disappear entirely into his hairline.

"Yeah . . . well . . . " Austin looks down, embarrassed; he hadn't meant to spill that part — if this got back to Ally, well . . . he'd lived a nice life. "It was open — anyway, who else has the description of, ' _. . . kind eyes, hair that flops just the right way. We live so close to each other, and yet we're so far apart, and he smells like a fresh summer breeze. And what is cooler than a guy named after a city in Texas?'_"

"Dude," Dallas begins and then he face-palms. "You are so oblivious, Austin!"

"It wasn't about Dallas!" says a voice from behind Austin. Austin whips around because it's Ally and he's been worrying about her for the last hour and a half and — wait . . . what did she mean that she didn't have a crush on Dallas . . . ? "And I can't believe you read my journal!" Oh crap.

Austin gives her the equivalent of the troll-face.

"_What_?" Austin's tone is one of disbelief. After all, who else could it be? Dallas and Ally exchange the looks that he usually exchanges with Trish after Dez does or says something ridiculously insane or absurd. Ally cracks a smile. "What is so funny, may I ask?"

"The poem wasn't about Dallas," she replies, leaning in closer to him so that he can smell her perfume, Beyoncé's _Hot_, he takes a step back because his heart is pounding like it's just learned how to beat, and —

"Then who was it about?" Austin asks, confused. He is dimly aware that people are staring at him and that Dallas has backed away, still laughing.

Ally sighs like he is the biggest idiot in the world. "It was about you!" And she runs away from him.

x

_quatorze_.

He runs after her because that's all he knows how to do.

"Ally," he says when he finally catches up to her. "What do you mean what you wrote in your songbook was about me?" It's almost like the whole world has stopped, like things that used to matter even only minutes ago — Cassidy, school, plans for tonight — no longer do because it's just him and Ally, right here, right now. The way that it was always meant to be.

"Don't you get it, Austin?" She looks insane, positively, frighteningly mad like this — brown waves tumbling over her shoulders; eyes darting around like a frightened rabbit; her expression one of grim determination. She takes another deep breath.

As for Austin, he is staring at his best friend like he's questioning her sanity — which she wouldn't be surprised if he was doing, and there is an expression of confusion on his face. "Get what? What do you mean, Ally? Why are you being so cryptic?"

She lets out a short laugh. "You know how I always say that I channel my emotions into my writing — " she begins.

Austin stares at her. "Yeah, but what has that got to do with — "

"Maybe if you'd let me finish, then I could explain it to you," Ally snaps, turning back into her old, familiar self for a second. And then it is gone and this slightly crazy girl has taken her place once more.

Austin grins apologetically.

" — as I was saying; I channel my emotions into my writing. I was writing about being in love with someone. More specifically, being in love with my best friend." She pauses, looking up at Austin for the first time in this whole conversation.

"But — what — ?" Austin is confused.

Ally sighs, like he is the most clueless being on earth. "What I'm saying is that I love you, Austin Moon."

Austin's jaw drops. "You — you what?"

"I'm in love with you."

x

**to be continued.**

* * *

** author's note ii:** Jesus Christ, Austin is so oblivious it's adorable!

Hopefully I'll upload the final part by the end of the week and if I'm done all my THG oneshots, I'll upload a chapter of Summer Nights.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the plot twists and the chapter although it wasn't my best.

Please don't favourite / alert without leaving a review!

- Maddie (overstreets)


	3. iii

**author's note: **Oh my gosh, thank you to everyone who reviewed — it means a lot to me! Sorry this took so long, I don't really have an excuse expect for laziness, but anyway, last part so enjoy! Yeah, it took me a week or three to finish. I suck.

**disclaimer:** So obviously, if I haven't owned Austin & Ally for the last two parts, why would I own it now? I just own the plot. Also, the song at the beginning is by Taylor Swift.

* * *

**love songs for the broken hearted  
PART III**

Today was a fairytale / I wore a dress / You wore a dark grey t-shirt / You told me I was pretty / When I looked like a mess / Today was a fairytale / Time slows down / Whenever you're around / Can you feel this magic in the air? / It must have been the way you kissed me / Fell in love when I saw you standing there / It must have been the way / Today was a fairytale.

— **TODAY WAS A FAIRYTALE**, Taylor Swift

_quinze_.

It takes him a full minute, even after her blatant confession, to fully comprehend what she has said. Because Ally, his best friend and next door neighbour, the girl who's slept over countless times — well, when they were younger before the fact that they were different genders began to bother their parents — how can _that_ Ally be in love with him?

After all, she's beautiful and smart —

Wait, when did he start to think of her as beautiful? Well, he supposes that he always had but now she wasn't just beautiful, she was _beautiful_. But he couldn't like Ally —

And she couldn't like him back. It's almost like a bad '80s rom-com, because she likes him but she can't. And that's exactly what he blurts out, "But you can't, Ally!" Because it doesn't make sense. Why would Ally like him?

Ally's gaze, which had held his without flinching while he'd slowly deliberated in his head, but at these words, she looked down quickly.

"No, that's not what I meant — " he begins awkwardly, already not knowing how he'll finish.

"Then what did you mean, Austin?" Ally says, and when she looks up again, he can see the anger in her eyes — but underneath that, a layer of hurt. "Because I think there's only one meaning for it!"

" — I meant that there are — " he continues but she gives him a glare and walks off, not a diva storm out like Cassidy does after a fight, but with slumped shoulders and her head down and Austin knows that she's going to the music room, possibly to write an angry song. " — so many reasons to choose someone that's not me, you're a princess, Ally." Of course, she doesn't hear the last part because of her walking away earlier, but two other people do.

x

_seize_.

The song from Ally's book and the card from his Valentine both seem to be weighing heavily in his pocket and he can't help but feel . . . almost _connected_ to them in a way. It's strange, of course, because the card is anonymous, unless —

With a strangled gasp, he leaps into the nearest room — which, luckily, happens to be the boys' bathroom — and pulls out both of the pieces of paper.

There is Ally's and he breathes in her familiar scent of strawberries, and then there is the mystery note. The note also smells like strawberries. Of course! How could he have been so thick?! Wait, don't answer that . . .

He remembers the song that Ally had been singing when he spying on her in the music room — _I love the things you do, it's how you do the things you love, but it's not a love song, not a love song, I love the way you get me not, correct me if I'm wrong — this is not a love song, not a love song. It had matched the musical composition that he had picked up off the floor._

And then he reads the note again, the one sent by the secret admirer — _You're always on my mind / I think about you all the time / Um, no / Lets not talk about it / Drama: We can live without it / Got your way with the world / There's a clock we'll ignore / Find a way around it._

"Austin, are you in here?" It's Trish. He doesn't know what he's more surprised about: Trish coming into the boys' washroom or Ally beginning is secret admirer. Just the thought of that makes him blush. "Okay, good. Dez and I were looking for you."

He gasps as a disembodied head appears at the bottom of the stall. "Trish! What are you doing in here?"

"Looking for you, obviously," Trish says, rolling her eyes as if the answer is quite obvious. "You ran off back there."

Austin fights the urge to scoff. "Maybe it's because I didn't want my romantic life — or lack thereof — to be broadcast around the school?"

Trish shrugs. "Well, our school's pretty boring. Are you coming out or am I coming in, Moon? Make up your mind."

He sighs and slowly, to show Trish that she can't boss him around — although she can — begins to unlock the door. "Okay," he says once he's stepped into the main part of the washroom. "What do you want? And where's Dez?" For they were quite alone in the washroom.

"He was coming with me . . . but they have pudding in the cafeteria," Trish says, giving in offhand shrug. "But we're here to talk about you. And Ally. And all the UST you guys have."

Austin stares at her, confused. "UST?"

"Unresolved Sexual Tension, obviously," Trish says, as if this is the most obvious thing on the planet. "Haven't you read Dasey fanfiction?"

" . . . er, right. Well, Ally and I have so such problems so you can go find your boyfriend again," Austin says in a voice that says he doesn't believe it.

"Fine. This will just take a minute." Trish's voice is methodical and official sounding. "Do you like Ally?"

"Of course I do!" Austin sputters. "She's my best friend!"

"Do you feel . . . tingles or sparks or whatever that poetic stuff is whenever she's around you?"

Austin thinks hard about that, recalling all the moments that he spent with her — moments that, now, seem to matter a lot more than they did even a few minutes ago. "Uh . . . " he honestly has nothing to say about this; or rather, he doesn't know _what_ to say. "I don't know."

Trish sighs, stamping her foot dramatically, "You still insist on being in denial, don't you?"

"I'm not — "

But he is, _he is_.

x

_dix-sept_.

The bell rings again, signalling that it's time for fourth period. Austin can't help but think, _finally_, he can escape this nightmare. Chemistry, he hopes, will take his mind off that.

Until he remembers that he had chemistry with Ally. Also known as his best friend who he isn't on speaking terms with, apparently.

But, he also knows that he has to face Ally and whatever feelings they may harbour for each other sooner than later, right?

Not that there were any, of course.

When he gets to chemistry, the bell has already rung, making him late . . . again. "Nice of you to join us, Mr. Moon," the chemistry teacher, Mr. Snap, mutters with a slight curl of his lip, "Third time late this semester. One more time and you've got yourself a detention."

Austin resists the urge to roll his eyes, "Yes, sir." He then finds his seat right next to Ally, who still hasn't said anything to him since their public blowout.

She isn't answering his texts, so he has to do it the old fashioned way: passing notes. Besides, Mr. Snap was too busy talking about Lewis – Dot diagrams to notice them, hopefully.

_[why are you ignoring me?_ – Austin]

He slips the note to Ally's side of the table, knowing that she'd have to answer it, or face Mr. Snap's wrath.

[_are you that thick, Austin?_ – Ally]

[_hahaha. srsly, i thought we were friends._ – Austin]

The next note came a little bit after the other.

[_you're right, i guess. we're still friends; always. _– Ally]

He grins; that is all he always wanted, really.

"Can you pass the worksheet?" Ally says from somewhere to his left. It's almost as if nothing has changed.

"Sure," he says, grabbing the worksheet from Lydia, the girl sitting at the lab table over.

Ally reaches out to grab the sheet, and for a second, their fingers brush.

He almost drops the sheet because it's all starting to click together.

He remembers Trish's words in the bathroom.

_"Do you feel . . . tingles or sparks or whatever that poetic stuff is whenever she's around you?"_

He had said that he didn't know at the time, but perhaps the feelings were always there and he had just learned to get used to it —

And then comes the startling realisation that, perhaps, he'd always known.

He likes Ally back.

x

_dix-huit_.

His mind is spinning and his heart is racing at the very thought of this, and Ally is staring at him, concerned.

He fires off a text to Dallas.

_[can u do me a favor?]_

Dallas responds almost immediately.

_[depends on what.]_

_[tell everyone that there's a party on the beach after school today. make sure ally knows.]_

_[done. i'm tired of all the ust.]_

[_srsly ust?]_

[_dasey fanfiction is addicting, okay_?]

He had a plan — he was going to tell her through music; after all, it was what he knew best.

x

_dix-neuf_.

At the beach, there's an open mike; absolutely perfect for expressing his feelings. Austin can't help but be impressed, impressed and nervous.

"Thanks, man," he says to Dallas, nodding at him as he passes, "You did a good job."

Dallas nods once before going towards the stage, where dozens of teens, mostly seniors, were loitering around with plastic cups filled with . . . _apple juice_.

As Dallas began the introductions, Austin tried to calm himself down; it's not like he hasn't performed in front of crowds — in front of _Ally_ — before, right? But this time, he knows it'll be different.

" — and I present to you, Austin Moon!" Dallas says and the crowd goes wild. Or, at least, they clap for him. It's not like he's Harry Styles or something, anyway.

He takes one more deep breath, gets up on the stage and scans the crowd for Ally. He finds her talking animatedly to Trish and locks eyes with her, gesturing for the band to begin, "I can get your heart beat beat-beat-beatin' like / I can get your heart beat beatin' like that / You know you got my heart beat beat-beat-beatin' like / Hey-ay ay-ay Hey-ay-ay — " By the time the first chorus is done, almost every was singing along or clapping.

"Would you, would you want it if I stood up above a crowd / Got up on a chair and if I shouted your name aloud / Could you, could you take me, call me baby without a doubt / I'm shouting your name right now, shouting your name right now. Don't you get it, get it, I'm nothin' like them other ones / Raise upon the notion, I ain't hosting no reruns / I said it, said it, said it, wouldn't let it be all or none / 'Cause I ain't no rerun, I ain't no rerun. I'll make you forget (forget) / What you came here for (here for) / For goodness sake, let's make or break this heart / 'Cause it needs more."

He shot the audience another smirk.

"I can get your heart beat beat-beat-beatin' like / I can get your heart beat beatin' like that / You know you got my heart beat beat-beat-beatin' like / Hey-ay-ay-ay Hey-ay-ay." He ended off with a dazzling smile for the audience, winking a Ally and doing the cool guitar thing that he'd always seen in movies and wanted to try — Cassidy, of course, had said that it was for idiots. Nut he was done playing for Cassidy.

"Ladies and gents, Austin Moon!" he heard Dallas yell from somewhere to his left.

Ally glances up at him, a small smile on her face.

"Great song, Austin!" Cassidy says to him, giving him the smile that could always win him over . . . until now.

"Thanks. Excuse me." He pushed past her without missing a beat.

"That was a good song, Austin," Ally says with a stiff smile when he finally jumps off the stage. "Was that to win Cassidy back?" Even now, as she's emotionally unstable, she's always wondering about him.

"Don't you get it, Ally?" Austin asks gently, reaching down to touch her cheek. "That song was for _you_. You make my heart beat."

"What?"

"You once told me to write songs based on how I felt . . . and I'm telling you that I'm crazy about you, Ally Dawson."

She opens her mouth to say something, probably to argue with him, but he doesn't allow her to.

He leans in closer and presses his mouth to hers —

x

_vingt._

And then he kisses her, right there on the beach like no one is watching.

He can hear applause — or maybe that's just in his head — but none of that matters; nothing matters except Ally's lips on his, chaining him to the earth.

All the years of pent up frustration and misguided feelings and almost misses face away at this point —

"Finally," he whispers once they break away from each other, "Now I know why I didn't feel any fireworks with Cassidy; I was saving them for you."

"Stop being so cheesy!" Ally giggles, swatting him on the arm.

For a second, it's just like the old days again, but then he kisses her on the cheek and puts his arm around her and she leans into him and it's much better than the old days.

x

_vingt et un_.

After the beach, they retreat back to Austin's house for movies and popcorn, and it's almost like the old days — also known as this morning — except it feels very different for the both of them; every touch causes a tingle, and Austin wonders if it's new or it was always there and he had just noticed it.

They're sitting closer than they normally would on the couch, but when Mr. and Mrs. Moon show up, they don't seem to notice a difference. "Do you think everyone noticed . . . _us_?" Ally asks after raising an eyebrow at Mr. Moon, who had not commented on the fact that her head was on his shoulder. "But we were too busy to notice each other."

"Probably," Austin says with a slight laugh. "That would explain Cassidy's intense jealousy."

"Or maybe she was just insecure, Austin," Ally says, fighting back the smile that is threatening to take over her face. "She was used to being the queen in every castle."

Austin leans in until his lips are inches away from hers, "Remember when we were six and you dragged me into playing Princess? I shall never speak of it again!"

Ally giggles, "Don't lie — you had fun!"

"I always have no matter what I'm doing if I'm with you, Ally," Austin says seriously, "And I'm saying that as your best friend. You'll always be a princess to me."

"And you'll always be my frog prince, Austin Moon," Ally gives him the kind of grin that makes his heart stop and speed up at the same time.

Austin brings his lips down and Ally moves forward at the same time, as if both simultaneously thinking the same thoughts. This kiss has just as many fireworks as the first one.

Neither of them is watching the movie, instead just holding hands and revelling in this perfection — which is nothing special but each other, and maybe, in the end, that's all they've ever wanted.

x

_vingt-deux. (or, the epilogue)_

That night, they go and watch the stars but he's not paying attention to them, only tracing the contours of Ally's face, watching her bright brown eyes.

"Look," she says suddenly, pointing somewhere above them, "A shooting star."

"Beautiful," he murmurs, but he still doesn't take his eyes off Ally.

"I don't need to wish for anything because this is all that I've ever wanted."

x

**fin.**

* * *

**author's note ii:** I hope that the ending wasn't too cliché and cheesy (who am I kidding, it was, but that's why we love Auslly.) and please don't forget to review.

- Maddie (formerly overstreets; now haynes-poseys, because Teen Wolf)


End file.
